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June 19, 2013

Peter Grier and Harry Bruinius: In the end, NSA might not need to snoop so secretly after all

Howard LaFranchi: Taliban peace talks hold glimmer of hope, but also unanswerable questions

Warren Richey: Supreme Court: For right to remain silent, a suspect must speak
Meredith Cohn: Leeches are making a comeback as medical helpers

Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D.: How to pick the healthiest breakfast cereal

The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: Spicy Double Chocolate Banana Muffins

June 17, 2013

Rabbi Simcha Weinstein: Black to the Future: American Apparel Gets Biblical

Patrik Jonsson: Minnesota Nazi: How did Nazi hunters miss Michael Karkoc?

Kate Irby, Ali Watkins, Trevor Graff and Kevin Thibodeaux: All the ways you're being watched
Don Lee: G-8 meeting will test NSA leaks' effect on U.S. influence

Patrik Jonsson: Fort Hood shooting: Judge nixes Nidal Hasan defense strategy. What now?

Stacey Burling: Why the stigma for migraine sufferers?

The Kosher Gourmet by Lisa Abraham: Does it work? 5 new kitchen gadgets put to the test

June 14, 2013

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: A spiritual budget: Religious economics and being a ruler

John P. Martin: Hitler insider's missing diary found

Matt Pearce: NSA surveillance disclosure could affect court cases
Peter Tinti: US bounties changes strategy on (Wild, Wild) West African jihadis

Daniel Pendrick, M.D.: Memory loss? Old age may be the least of it

Lauren F. Friedman: But it's all natural! Should we have an instinctive preference for herbal remedies?

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Streisand and Alicia Keys in Israel; "Girls" Stuff; Mel Brooks, Another TV special; Superman (who is Jewish) returns --- Israeli plays his mom

The Kosher Gourmet by Sharon K. Ghag : Bored with salad? Bling it up a bit (4 effortless recipes that will result in a 'WOW!')

June 12, 2013

Stephanie Hanes: Little girls or little women? The Disney princess effect

Fred Weir: In tweak to US, Russia would 'consider' asylum for Snowden

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: What's so special about Omega-3 supplements?
Morgan Housel: What newspapers were saying when you should have been buying

Pete Spotts: How cockroaches evolved so as to bypass 'roach motels'

The Kosher Gourmet by Anjali Prasertong: Deep-dish cookie: Warm, gooey and a little over the top

June 10, 2013

Joseph A. Slobodzian: Faith healing and third degree murder: Thorny legal case
Lindsay Wise: Few options for online users to avoid spying, experts say

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: There are plenty of nutritional food bargains out there
Harvard Health Letters: Can bariatric surgery control diabetes?

Zach Murdock: Superglue helps doctors save infant's life

The Kosher Gourmet by Celebrated chef Mario Batali : As good as grilling gets: Rib eye with dry mushroom spice rub

June 7, 2013

Rabbi David Aaron: Beating jealousy

Caroline B. Glick: Wounded . . . and dangerous

Clifford D. May: Al Qaeda vs. Hezbollah
Harvard Health Letters: Fighting back against allergy season

Kimberly Lankford: Grandparents who use FSA to cover grandkid's braces and other must-know info

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom:J ewish Tony Nominees/Tony Awards; Jewish Teen Actor In Sci-Fi Flick; Jewish singer in "Voice" finals

The Kosher Gourmet by Anjali Prasertong: A tart filling so good it might not make it to the crust

June 5, 2013

John Rosemond: Mom, Dad: Talk More and listen less

Kristen Chick: Egypt court sentences 43 pro-democracy workers to prison

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: Mushrooms Have Medicinal As Well As Culinary Value
Morgan Housel: Why you never learn from your investment mistakes

Don Lee: In China, kindergarten rivalry takes deadly turn

The Kosher Gourmet by Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan: 30-Minute Coq au Vin isn't a dream

June 3, 2013

Molly Hennessy-Fiske: Military judge to consider letting Fort Hood shooting defendant represent himself

Richard A. Serrano: Pvt. Bradley Manning's WikiLeaks trial also a test for government

Mark Trumbull: Have degree, driving cab: Nearly half of college grads are overqualified
Kim Lankford: What to do when long-term care insurance premiums rise

Deborah Netburn: Study: Adults' mouth bacteria may help babies

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jewish Contestant on 'The Voice'; Will Smith's 'Jewish movie family'; Bravo Gives Long Island Jews the Jersey Shore Treatment; Magicians and More

The Kosher Gourmet by Bill Ward: How to be as refined as the wines at a wine tasting

May 29, 2013

Andrew Connelly and Helene Bienvenu: The Little Synagogue that Refused to Die

Dennis Prager: The 'Muslims-Killed-by-the-West' Lie

David Clark Scott: Open war on teachers?
Morgan Housel: If you know only five things about investing, make it these

Sara Reardon: AGenome detectives change the donation game

Deborah Netburn: A one-way ticket to Mars? 78,000-plus and counting apply by video

The Kosher Gourmet by Bev Bennett: CHEDDAR AND CHERRY MUFFINS --- your mouth is already watering

May 24, 2013

Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb: When I didn't so 'humbly disagree'

Caroline B. Glick: Thank you, Hafez al-Assad

Diana West: From the Brooklyn Bridge to London
Morgan Housel: Why spotting bubbles is so much harder than you think

Environmental Nutrition editors: NuVal labeling to the rescue?

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Memorial Day: Jews Serving and KIA in War on Terror; Liberace Bio-Pic; Jew Wins "Survivor"; Shalom, Dr. Brothers; More

The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen: HIDE THESE FROZEN TREATS FROM THE KIDDIES!: Sangria pops; Irish cream pudding pops; mango Lassi pops

May 22, 2013

John Thorne: They launched the 'Arab Spring' but now yearn for the good old days of a strongman

John Rosemond: 'Disciplinary math' adds up to parental successl

Warren Richey: Are prayers before public meetings OK? Supreme Court to decide
Rick Montgomery: Use of ADHD drugs as study aid raises concern on campuses

Brierley Wright, M.S., R.D.: 6 convincing reasons you should keep carbs in your diet

Eoin O'Carroll: Scientists examine nothing, find something

The Kosher Gourmet by Carole Kotkin: This soup is made from one of the great pleasures of spring: A wonderful pairing of rosy color and earthy tang

May 20, 2013

Richard A. Serrano: Is Meir Kahane's assassin now a changed man?

Hannan Adely: Town raises Palestinian flag at City Hall

Melissa Healy: Genetic copies of living people from embryos no longer science fiction
Morgan Housel: When smart investors do stupid things

Sharon Saloman, M.S., R.D.: Hunger games: Eat more, weigh less, without starving

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Jews Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame; Anton Yelchin co-stars in New "Trek" film; Kutcher (but not Kunis) visits Israel; Jewish TV Star Praises Jewish Rap Star

The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: WARNING: This WALNUT CAKE WITH PRALINE FROSTING, perfect for afternoon coffee, is addicting


Jewish World Review Feb. 27, 2008 / 21 Adar I 5768

He started it

By Debra J. Saunders

Debra J. Saunders
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Hillary Rodham Clinton recently jumped on Barack Obama for what her aides called "a pretty big flip-flop" as Obama began to backpedal from a pledge to participate in the federal public campaign financing program in the general election. The program would limit each presidential nominee's spending to $85 million in taxpayer-donated dollars between the August conventions and the November election. Both Clinton and Obama opted out of the public financing system during the primary campaign. Now that Obama is breaking fundraising records as he draws about $1 million a day, he apparently doesn't see private campaign cash to be as corrupting as before. Well, Obama did promise change. The funny part is that Clinton's position on public financing has evolved, too. She used to say she would not participate in public financing in the general election — now campaign aides say she might. Not that it would matter. If history is any guide, then Team Clinton II would waste little time putting together a price list for donors interesting in buying — er, spending — quality time in the White House.


As for John McCain, he, too, has begun attacking Obama for backtracking on his public financing pledge. Oddly, McCain, a self-styled reformer, now hints that he'll stick with public financing — if Obama does. "If Sen. Obama goes back on his commitment to the American people, then obviously we have to rethink our position," McCain told reporters. Someone on McCain's staff might want to tell him he is too old to cry, "He started it first."


Worse, at this very moment McCain is trying to wiggle out of the public financing system in the primary, which caps spending at $54 million. McCain signed an agreement to use public financing. But he never took the money and instead used it as collateral on an unused line of credit. Federal Election Commission Chairman David Mason sent McCain a letter last week telling McCain he can't withdraw from the public financing system. McCain's lawyers are challenging Mason.


For his part, Obama claims he will accept public financing if McCain pledges to curb independent political groups (known as 527s).That's disingenuous, too. Obama, a lawyer, must know that election law expressly prohibits McCain aides from telling 527s what to do and not do.


What a waste of hot air. After the finger-pointing and scapegoating, we all know how this is going to end. Both the Democratic and Republican nominees will opt out of public financing in the general election. The candidates can raise more than the $85 million cap, so they're gearing up to grab as much cash as they can — then blame the other nominee for making them do it. And voters won't blame their party's nominee for choosing special interest money over public money, because winning is everything.


Besides, voters tend to resent special-interest money mainly when it flows to the other party.


Figure that, by 2012, even the pretense of public financing will be gone. A system designed to free candidates from having to go hat in hand to Fat Cats to fund presidential campaigns can't free them from a bondage they willingly assume. And the momentum is with More Money.


In 1996, gazillionaire Steve Forbes opted out of public financing in order to evade the system's strict spending limits in the primary. In 2000, Forbes and George W. Bush, a fundraising ace, sat out the primary. In 2004, Bush, John Kerry and Howard Dean said no to primary public financing funds. By 2008, Clinton and Obama opted out. In the GOP, Mitt Romney, who — I'll throw this in just because it's an interesting item — spent $167,000 of his own money for each of his 253 delegates, according to the Boston Globe, bypassed public financing. Ditto Rudy Giuliani. John Edwards and John McCain both signed on for public financing funds — although apparently McCain was simply sticking a toe in the water. Other candidates — Joe Biden, Chris Dodd, Tom Tancredo — took public financing, which only reinforces the perception that public financing is for losers. And you know what? It doesn't matter that public financing is fading away, because there is no law that can keep Big Money out of presidential politics. When Washington passed campaign contribution limits — the law now limits each person from giving more than $4,600 to any candidate for the primary and general election — big donors started writing big checks to the parties. The McCain-Feingold campaign reform act limited soft money (big checks) to parties; the money flowed to 527 campaigns. You can't stop it. It's like water working its way downhill. Or aging. So when Washington passes laws to limit where big money goes, the new laws only end up making it harder for voters to know where the big money went.


Washington would do better gutting these do-gooder laws that can't deliver. But the urge to promise the public the illusion of reform runs deep.


In a 2004 interview in his Senate office, I asked McCain what it would take for him to realize that McCain-Feingold didn't block big money, but simply diverted its flow to less visible and less accountable interests.


McCain countered, "The problem is the 527s, but that's not a problem with the law. That's the problem with the Federal Election Commission." No doubt, FEC staffers now are enjoying watching McCain pushing for the FEC to cut him some slack.

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